Decide

Today’s Bible Reading: JOSHUA 22:1-24:33

Joshua 24:15

And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Serving God is a choice. It is a decision everyone must make. We must decide where our allegiance lies. We must determine whose banner we will fly and whose path we will follow. No one is undecided. No one can be indecisive. All must choose a side. To not choose is to choose. So, inevitably everyone must pledge their allegiance. As Jesus said “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” (Luke 11:23).

Joshua presents a choice to the people. The land had been conquered, the portions had been allotted and the promises had been fulfilled. Now they would be dispersed to inhabit the land. They would be dismissed to their inheritance. They would no longer be together under one leader. Each one of them had to make their own way. They had to take their own path. They would dwell in houses they didn’t build; dine on food they didn’t grow and drink from vineyards they didn’t plant. Yet danger lurked about. The gods of the land lingered in the hearts of the remaining residents. Any association with those who remain could easily draw them away. They could become snares to trap them, whips on their sides and thorns in their eyes (23:13). The abandoning of their faith was a very real possibility. The ways of the world could sway them to wander from their Lord.

Knowing what lay ahead, Joshua gives them a final exhortation. He admonished them to decide before they dwell. He tells them to determine who they will serve before they set out. He calls them to choose now who they will serve. He knows they will be pressured to cave to culture, to surrender to society and to follow the crowd. He understands that a decision now could dictate their future devotion. So, he calls for a commitment. He asks them to choose. He summons them to serve God or the gods. He lays the selection before them either to stay on track or shift their trajectory. He declares his devotion to the Lord. He renews his commitment to the Lord by proclaiming that as for him and his house they would serve the Lord. Joshua chose the Lord and he asks them to do the same.

We too must choose who we will serve. This is not a frivolous decision. It is not a mere verbal affirmation of allegiance or a quaint saying to hang in your wall. It is a lasting choice. It is a lifelong commitment to serve the Living God. It is a decision to go against the grain and to move from the masses. It entails taking the road less traveled. It is a declaration to live for the Lord. It is a daily determination to choose Christ over culture. It’s one’s announcement to wholly follow Jesus. So, choose wisely, confess confidently and continue faithfully. Decide today that “as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.”

Today determine to serve the Lord. Ask the Lord to help you to decide for Him in your daily encounters and experiences. Ask Him to help you withstand the pressure to cave to culture and stand with societal “norms”. Plead with Him to help you live for Him in a world that lives against Him. Ask Him to help you to remain “steadfast, immovable and always abounding in the work of Lord” (1 Cor 15:58). Decide today and every day with Joshua that as for you and your house you will serve the Lord.